In 2011, state agencies reported 21 suspicious information security incidents and 14 suspicious incidents this year, on par with last year’s data, according to a report by the Statesman Journal newspaper.
“Nothing is bulletproof. [Hackers] are always trying to think of new ways to get a hold of information. Our best defense is working together, taking action as quick as possible and raising that awareness”, Theresa Masse, Oregon’s chief information security officer, told the newspaper.
Masse attributed the drop in the number of reported information security incidents to more awareness about cyber security as the state continues to implement more safeguards.
“It depends on the motivation of the actual criminal as to what they’re looking for and it doesn’t exempt federal governments, or state governments from being on the radar screen”, she told the newspaper.
The state Department of Administrative Services has allocated $5.6 million for the state data center’s information security for 2011–2013. The Enterprise Security Office is spending about $2.4 million on protecting state information during the same time period, according to the report.